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Father Ayoub Youssef stands among the burned ruins of the annex building belonging to the St George Coptic Catholic Church in Delga, Minya December 7, 2014. "We have the Brotherhood, Salafis and thugs, and," Father Youssef says, "we have more than 60% illiteracy, which is a time bomb."





On August 13 and 14, 2013, after the violent dispersal of the pro-Morsi sit-ins in Cairo, supporters of the deposed president Mohammad Morsi went on a violent rampage across the country looting and burning churches. 

Over one year later, while many churches have begun the rebuilding process, others remain charred as government promises to help rebuild are slow to implement. 

This story appeared in the Pittsburgh Tribune Review on January 18, 2015. 

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A makeshift altar inside the Virgin Mary and St Abrahm's Monastery in Delga, Minya province, on December 6, 2014. The monastery was looted and burned by pro-Morsi supporters on August 14, 2013.

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The burned remains of manuscripts and volumes of Islamic and Christian literature inside the St George Coptic Catholic Church library in Delga, Minya December 7, 2014. Father Ayoub Youssef says, "We have a saying: Open a school, close a prison."

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The burned and charred remains of a mural in the Virgin Mary and Saint Abrahm's Monastery in Delga, Minya on December 6, 2014. "For one month and two days we didn't see the police," said Father Abrahm Tannas.

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A man walks through the charred remains of a library and storage facility annex belonging to the St George Coptic Catholic Church in Delga, Minya on December 7, 2014. The fire gutted the annex where Islamic and Christian literature were housed. The church annex was destroyed after supporters of the deposed president Mohammad Morsi attacked it following the crackdown on the Rabaa and Nahda sit-ins in Cairo on August 14, 2013.

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A young man watches a Sunday school class at a makeshift prayer hall underneath the Prince Tadros Church in Minya, December 7, 2014. The Prince Tadros Church is being rebuilt by the government after pro-Morsi supporters looted and burned many churches following the dispersal of sit-ins in Cairo August 14, 2013.


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The upper floor of the Prince Tadros Church in Minya undergoing government renovation on December 7, 2014. "This is the first step for reconciliation," said Dr Sherif Zekry. "Coptic and Muslim donors were helpful."

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A man leads children in song during Sunday school class at a makeshift prayer hall underneath the Prince Tadros Church in Minya, December 7 2014.

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A child walks among the ruins of a building annex that was once a school and living quarters inside the Virgin Mary and St Abrahms Monastery in Delga, Minya on December 6, 2014. The monastery was burned by pro-Morsi supporters on August 14, 2013.

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An incense burner hangs among the ruins of St Mary's Church inside the Virgin Mary and St Abrahms Monastery, December 6, 2014. The 4th century church and accompanying monastery were looted and burned by pro-Morsi supporters on August 14, 2013.

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The inside of St Moussa church in Minya December 7, 2014. Locals say this area "very very rough." Nearby is a Gamaa al Islamiya mosque where many of the protests originated. The church has yet to be renovated or restored after pro-Morsi supporters looted and burned it on August 14, 2013.

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Three girls sit outside the St Moussa church in Minya, December 7, 2014. The church suffered extensive damages and may need to be demolished and rebuilt, after pro-Morsi supporters attacked and burned churches across the country following the dispersal of protests in Cairo on August 14, 2013.


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El Dahabia, a boat over 100 years old, owned by the Evangelical Church in Minya sits burnt and skeletal in the Nile river on December 7, 2014.


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